If it works better for you, it's not a mistake. If you can share pics, people will have a better idea of what you mean and can chime in.

This is the previoous island and there is no room for seating. It would be tight as an island.

If you can't post pics, a layout on grid paper with measurements would help.

Here is the layout I’d like to go with.

Make a drawing with DIMENSIONS entry points, windows, adjacent spaces.. Someone else's layout in someone else's kitchen is irrelevant to your kitchen.

Dear CZ,

Unless you post a scaled plan drawing similar this one…

you won’t get much traction here.

If you want to make a rough sketch with dimensions of your existing kitchen and adjacect spaces and post it. I’ll draft your plan for you for free and post it here.

Your sketch doesn't need to be pretty (see example below).

Don't waste your time getting hung up on what it looks like. Just have accurate dimensions on it.

Label doors, windows, and adjacent rooms. Measure from jamb to jamb of your window and door openings. See example of what I mean below.

I hope this has been helpful.

Joe Brandao

Kitchen Design Company

Thanks Joe but, I don’t have it in me to do all that. I do have a kitchen designer who has. Either a small island or the l-shape will work in my kitchen. I found the old island made it too tight . So, I prefer the l-shape. I just wanted some general feedback about the l-shape. General thoughts if any.

Dear CZ,

Without your existing and proposed kitchen layouts I don’t know exactly where you’re starting from, and exactly where you truly want to go.

I have nothing to analyze to check how your existing kitchen performs, to then compare it to how your new kitchen will perform. So you can discover what works and what performance problems need to be resolved, fixed, or eliminated. So it’s hard to give you direction.

General thoughts

I’ve been doing this for a long time and you don’t sound like you are so sure that a small island or I-shaped island will actually work. Because by posting here it’s clear to me that you’re not willing to bet your future life, in your new kitchen, in your own home on this being true just yet.

Even though you are trying to convince yourself that one of these two options IS the only way for you to go.

I have designed hundreds of kitchen of all shapes and sizes and I have never had a kitchen that didn’t present at least 5 very different new kitchen options. You can see examples of what I mean by clicking the following link. http://www.kitchendesignco.com/layout-laboratory/

If you haven’t seen 4 or 5 unique kitchen layout options that resolve, fix, or eliminate your existing kitchen’s performance problems. Then it makes sense to me why you are still holding on to your uncertainty and doubt.

You will know if you have the right new kitchen solution for YOU when you can answer this simple question. Can you tell me Exactly How You’ll be Living in your new kitchen, day to day and when you entertain, AFTER you get it?

None of my potential clients can…that’s why they contact me. If you’re like them you don’t want a new kitchen to replace your old one. You can get that on almost every street corner.

What you truly want and desire is a new, different, better, easier LIFE, that you don’t get to Live Now in your existing kitchen. That you know doesn’t work for you from your own personal experience.

Don’t settle for just a new kitchen because it won’t change your life. Not like you’re hoping it will.

So, Exactly How will You’ll be Living in your new kitchen, day to day and when you entertain, AFTER you get it?

If you don’t know exactly…you have more work to do.

I hope this has been helpful.

Joe Brandao

Kitchen Design Company

Thank you Joe for such a complete and thoughtful response. I’m confident in my designers and we have worked out many details today and finalized the plan. I appreciate your comments and agree.

"Thanks Joe but, I don’t have it in me to do all that. I do have a kitchen designer who has. Either a small island or the l-shape will work in my kitchen. I found the old island made it too tight . So, I prefer the l-shape. I just wanted some general feedback about the l-shape. General thoughts if any."

There is nothing 'general" about any kitchen EXCEPT PLANNING

So, it seems your "general answer" must come from the one person who has the dimensions. Your designer.

Jan,
I know it is a specialized job to plan a kitchen and I was impressed with my design teams ability to see options I hadn’t considered. They have been to my house twice and have come up with creative solutions for the kitchen and three other rooms in this project. I had the advantage of having an existing island the previous owners removed that I could place in this L-shape and test out. And, unless someone here says “oh no, L-shapes are not good. “ I’ve come to really like the L-shape for my space. By stating general, I just didn’t want to cause designers here to spend a lot of time with design options, because it’s time consuming and it’s already been done. Islands are very popular now and the small island that was here just got in the way. We explored configuring the eating area but, I choose to keep a kitchen table as oppose to creating a nice big island with seating.

CZ you have answered your own question very well. You said you have an island now that makes you feel cramped... you moved it ( good for you!! ) and you like how it feels and the way the counters flow and you choose to keep your kitchen table instead of a large island and you are working with folks who have given you great ideas for the space for our consideration.

Not all rooms can fit an island properly. A well done peninsula can be much more valuable in the space. The room predicts that better than any design styles or trends.

It sounds like you are making the right decisions for you and that is most important!